INDIANAPOLIS – February is barely a few days old, but the Colts have already had one busy offseason.
The retirement of Anthony Castonzo and Philip Rivers happened. The Colts lost their offensive coordinator and 4 other assistant coaches. And the most important event of the 2021 offseason just completed, with the Senior Bowl taking place.
Sitting with the 21st overall pick in April’s Draft, the Colts could go in a variety of directions.
Here is our second Mock Draft look for 2021:
ESPN’s Mel Kiper: Pick No. 21: DE-Kwity Payne (Michigan)
Kiper’s Analysis: With Philip Rivers retired and Jacoby Brissett a free agent, we know the Colts will be in the quarterback market this offseason. If they wait until the draft to make their move, they might have to trade up to get their guy. I don’t see a fit here. Paye is a tough evaluation. He finished his four-year college career with 11.5 sacks and had only two last season. But we know that the draft is all about size/athleticism traits, even when the production doesn’t match. And that’s the 6-foot-4, 270-pound Paye, who is a gifted athlete. This is an upside pick, and the Colts have a hole at defensive end with Justin Houston hitting free agency.
CBS Sports’ Chris Trapasso: Pick No. 21: OT-Samuel Cosmi (Texas)
Trapasso’s Analysis: The Colts have a huge hole at left tackle, and Cosmi has good pass-blocking abilities. He just has to get stronger and a tick quicker off the ball.
Pro Football Focus’ Ben Linsey’s: Pick No. 21: WR-Kadarius Toney (Florida)
Linsey’s Analysis: The more glaring needs on offense for Indianapolis are at quarterback and left tackle following the retirement of Philip Rivers and Anthony Castonzo, but continuing to add playmakers should be high in the list of priorities for the Colts, as well. Toney certainly fits that bill. He isn’t a finished product at wide receiver after serving primarily as a gadget player earlier in his Florida career, but he has all the traits that lead you to believe that he can develop into a polished route-runner. However, you’re drafting Toney for how freakishly elusive he is in the open field, which is highlighted by his 32 broken tackles on 80 catches since 2019. He would give the Colts’ receiving corps some extra juice in an offseason where 31-year-old T.Y. Hilton is scheduled to hit free agency.
The Ringer’s Danny Kelly CB-Jaycee Horn (South Carolina)
Kelly’s Analysis: Xavier Rhodes revived his career with the Colts in 2020, but the veteran isn’t getting any younger (and may leave in free agency this spring) and Indy would be well served by bolstering the position both for the short and long term. Horn would bring size and playmaking instincts to Indy’s defense.
MOCK DRAFT TOTALS
In each installment of the mock draft looks we will total up all the positions pundits have pegged for the Colts throughout the draft process:
–1st Mock Draft Look (January 13th)
Totals:
QB-Mac Jones (1)
QB-Kyle Trask (1)
DE-Gregory Rousseau (1)
CB-Tyson Campbell (1)
WR-Rashod Bateman (1)
DE-Kwity Payne (1)
OT-Samuel Cosmi (1)
WR-Kadarius Toney (1)
CB-Jaycee Horn (1)
Bowen’s Analysis: With additional morsels of information, we are seeing a good variety to the Colts at No. 21 overall. It is interesting to note that zero quarterbacks come in this Mock Draft look, with around a handful of QBs going in the first 15-20 picks in the respective mocks. Our first offensive tackle peg comes after Anthony Castonzo’s retirement. This makes sense on many levels. Wide receiver (Toney), edge rusher (Payne) and cornerback (Horn) are also in this look. The cornerback situation will be interesting to watch. The Colts have spent a pair of second-round picks at corner under Chris Ballard, with not good success (Quincy Wilson and Rock Ya-Sin). But the need still exists with Xavier Rhodes hitting free agency. Toney is a dynamic talent with the ball in his hands, and would certainly give this offense the type of playmaker that Jim Irsay mentioned last week. How the Colts handle edge rusher this year will be another indicator of the future confidence they have in Kemoko Turay and Ben Banogu.
